Song Honors Firefighters

EDONA, Ariz. — If Jerry Kass has his way, a song performed by country-Western singer Rod Hart will become the national ballad for firefighters.

Kass, a retired 23-year veteran firefighter from Milwaukee, wrote the song called "Firefighter's Saving Hand."

"It tells the story of firefighters in a very short time, and it's humble," the Sedona resident says. "There's never been a song written for firefighters." He hopes the song will "enhance the image of firefighters" and "reveal the dangers firemen must face on the job."

In addition to promoting his ballad, Kass is assisting the Council of Fallen Firefighting Memorial in erecting a memorial in Colorado Springs, Colo., honoring firemen who have died in the line of duty.

Kass said his ballad would probably be installed in the memorial as a push-button or video recording. Another possibility, he said, would be to inscribe the lyrics on the memorial's wall. Kass and members of the council are lobbying Congress for funds to assist in getting the memorial built by next October.

The idea of writing a ballad for firemen struck Kass last summer when he heard about a Phoenix firefighter who died trying to save a dying man from a storage bin.

Kass is carrying the cost of promoting the song. He said any money made from it would be given to widows of fallen firefighters or to the proposed memorial.